A Modern May Day

May Day, the first day in May, dates back to pagan times and was associated with the festival of Flora, the Roman goddess of flowers. Celebrations over the past century in the United States and many other Western countries can best be remembered by the Dance of the Maypole and the crowning of the May Queen. In Modern times people have celebrated the holiday by leaving flower baskets at the doorstep of loved ones. The goal being to ring the doorbell and dash away quickly so as not to be seen. It's an anonymous celebration of Springtime Friendships.

This tradition still exists and I've enjoyed celebrating in this way with neighbors, but since a great many of my friends and family live far away from me I'm going to celebrate this year in a whole new way. I take a lot of photos of flowers every year. I can't seem to resist the impulse to photograph them even though I rarely do anything with the photos afterwards. This year I pulled a few of the prettiest photos shot over the past year into printshop and created a flower collage to email and text message to friends and family faraway.

If you live miles away from your family and friends and would like to celebrate this holiday, there are a slew of photo collage, smartphone apps like Instagram's Instaframe that make it simple and quick to create a May Day greeting. Springtime signifies nature's renewal. There's no better time to affirm friendships. Let your loved ones know they're loved and missed this first day of May.